Home owner uses rifle to stop intruders

Police arrested two accused bandits after a home owner turned the tables on them.Both suspects were still dressed in hospital attire after making their first court appearance on Monday.

Their alleged break-in at a Warren Avenue home didn't quite turn out as planned.

Police say when the pair entered the house around 9:30 Sunday night, the homeowner grabbed his rifle.

"The confrontation escalated to the point where a couple of shots were fired. The two alleged perpetrators were both wounded, fled the scene and were apprehended a short time later by our police department," Capt. Martin Lund said.

Officers searching the grounds of a nearby chapel found the apparently superficially wounded men hiding at the edge of the Hudson River.

Both Julio Urena, 17, and Juan Martinez, 25, are now charged with second degree robbery and second degree burglary.

Bail has been set at 50-thousand dollars each.

The homeowner was not available and a family friend picking up the mail refused to comment, but others had plenty to say.

"I'm one of those people who believe you have the right to defend your home," Charlie Di Carlo said.

Di Carlo's elderly aunt lives two doors from the scene of the crime. He believes the homeowner did the right thing.

"I'm concerned that if you don't defend yourself, then it's going to become too easy for people to just think that they can just walk right in someone else's home," he said.